OUR LAST DAY IN MANILA

QUESTIONS AND QUOTES FROM THE DAY...

WHY DO YOU SAY "OH BOY" SO MUCH??

WHY DO YOU SAY "UNBELIEVABLE" SO MUCH??

" WE GO HOME TOMORROW. THANK YOU!!"
"ROMEO, WE GO HOME TOMORROW!"
"WE GO HOME TOMORROW, THANK YOU, GOD!!"
This line was repeated several times by Rodrigo. He must have said it at least 6 times at the pool today.

Overall, today was a very good day! We went to a government office as Roselyn needed to sit in on a seminar for older kids who are going overseas. We also met a representative from ICAB there which is the department here that governs international adoptions. He had the long awaited visas and passports. We spent about 4 hours there - then went and had lunch at Jollibees (the Filipino McDonald's). After that we went on to the ICAB office. It was a bit surreal to finally be there. It had become almost a mythical place as we had heard and used this acronym so many times and so to get to the actual place after all this time was even a bit emotional. There we met with a social worker who had a lot of paperwork including travel documents that we will need tomorrow. They were so kind to us at ICAB and gave a few small gifts to the kids and even brought us juice and coffee before we left.

After ICAB we went back to the guesthouse. I should mention that to get around Manila - we have had a driver named Danny who is great! He drove our family on our last trip and has done this each day the past several days. He has a very sweet manner and knows the maze of Manila streets and highways like the back of his hand. His English is not so good (our Tagalog though is much worse!) so our conversations can be very interesting at times - but we manage to understand each other just fine. The real test though will be to see if he understands that our pickup time tomorrow is 4 am - not pm!!

The rest of the afternoon was spent shooting a few baskets, a lot of time swimming and some packing up. A movie followed dinner and now the kids are asleep. Mary and I (yes, she let me be a guest writer again!!) are finishing our packing tonight and taking a deep breath as we prepare for a very long but very exciting day tomorrow. Our flight leaves Manila at 7:45 am and we arrive at MSP airport at 11 am - all on Saturday! Pray for us to be able to keep Rodrigo in sight at the airports tomorrow. He is such a good kid but is fascinated by that type of environment. He also has a very independent streak! When we do remind him - he will stay close - we just need to remind him every couple of minutes or just keep our hands on him!!

Our trip has been nothing short of unbelievable!! (we really do say that a lot as our kids pointed out today!) We have felt so loved and supported by everyone at home - thank you!! Your encouraging words and prayers have meant so much to all of us.

We are biased of course - but we look forward to having you meet our 3 new unbelievable and very special kids sometime soon!! Minnesota - here we come!

ONE MORE DAY TO GO

WHAT ARE YOU MOST EXCITED TO SEE WHEN WE GET HOME??

Romeo (without hesitation) No. 1 - My sisters. No. 2 - Bernie No. 3 - My neighbors.

Rodrigo - No. 1 - Stephanie. No. 2 - Bernie

Roselyn - "What answer did Romeo give???" (I wouldn't tell her.) No. 1 - Family. No. 2 - School.

It rained today. It seemed like a perfect day to visit the aquarium. It was very nice and kid-friendly. Roselyn, Romeo and Rodrigo seemed to enjoy it! We found something new that I had never experience - a FISH SPA! As you lower your feet into the pool, small fish come and nibble on your feet supposedly taking off the dry skin. I was more willing than Allen to do this so the boys and I enjoyed a foot spa (of sorts). It was a fun experience and really, quite relaxing after you get used to the idea of fish "snacking" on your feet.

We stopped at the mall to buy a few DVDs for the airplane. I'm ashamed to admit that we have resorted to movies to have some "down" time but it is usually no more than one a day. :) It was still raining when we got back to the guest house, but we all went swimming anyway. The beauty of being in this climate is that, rain or shine, it is just plain hot!

The guest house is a great place for us to stay. There is a pool, a basketball court, a small library, a sitting room and the food is great!! The downside is that our room is pretty cozy. We manage, but sleeping together in a 12 X 15 room has been a real bonding experience for all of us. Really, we don't mind and it is good for us to be together...especially at night. There have been no issues during the night (other than a little snoring and sleep talking) which we are thankful for.

It was a good day. In some ways, I feel like we have been in the Philippines for...a long time. In other ways, it has gone by so quickly. Tomorrow - we have a couple of meetings that we are required to attend and then we should get the long awaited visas and travel documents for the kids. The kids have been so patient with long rides in the van and waiting at airports etc... - but are asking how long this will all take tomorrow. We think they are remembering their 14 hour day at St. Lukes Medical Center here when they had their medical exams a few weeks ago. Shouldn't be that bad tomorrow!! Please pray for patience for all of us as well as continued good health and endurance to finish things up here and get home to Cambridge!

DAY SIX

Today was yet another adventure. I wish I could tell you all the stuff that has happened, but there is simply not enough time. I already feel like I could write a book about our journey but I guess for now I have children to tend to! We visited the WW2 American Cemetery in Manila. We thought it would be a good idea to see this memorial and point out how Filipinos and Americans served together in the war. It was a beautiful cemetery where 17,000 soldiers are buried. Another 35,000 were listed as part of the memorial. I'm sure it wasn't all that interesting to the kids, but it will be neat to remember that we went there.

After the cemetery came another trip to the mall. Roselyn and I still had some shopping to do and the boys decided to go ice skating. It was a hoot watching the three of them go around in circles on the ice. Neither had been ice skating EVER before but you could not tell by the way they were flying around the rink. They were passing Allen up in no time. It was pretty amazing. Oh, and did I mention that there was NO FEAR at all??!!! I asked Rigo if he fell down. He knew that he had fallen EXACTLY 6 times! I thought that was quite funny.

Roselyn is anxious to get HOME. These days in Manila are good for us, but she is ready to start her new life in the US. I can't blame her. After all, hanging out with 2 brothers and the parents is probably not all that fun for a 15-year-old girl. She has been a real trooper and has made the best of it.

It was back to the guest house, swimming, dinner, Yahtzee, books and bed. Wow! One more day of sightseeing, a final visit to the Inter-Country Adoption Board and we will be on our way back to Minnesota. I talked with Bill Berg a few weeks back about "normal" and how it relates to adoption. I am craving "normal" again and I am anxious to return to it, but it will definitely be a "new normal". I get glimpses of our "new normal" every day now. Everything still seems so new and out of the ordinary, but every once in a while, I have a feeling of calm because I know that this is going to be our "new normal". It will be different for all of us, especially our kids. Our "new normal" pales in comparison to theirs. At the end of every day, I continue to marvel at how well they are doing. There are sad moments, but really, they are taking all of this in stride. I am so proud of them! I am so glad that we will be able to help them to settle in on a NEW NORMAL that is secure.

One last comment about my husband. Well, as you might imagine, he is AMAZING! I get such a kick watching him with the boys and managing our new family beautifully. You should see him! Rodrigo and Romeo love him! What's not to love??? He is patient with them and PLAYS with them all the time!!!! The downside is that he is an "old" father and when 9:30 p.m. rolls around, it's straight to bed for this man! If you know Allen at all, he is definitely a night owl. I think this may cure him once and for all. Thank you again for your prayers and your comments. It is something we look forward to at the end of every day.

DAY FIVE

Today was Romeo's 12th birthday! It probably wasn't his first choice to be traveling, but we did try to celebrate the day! I thought the kids would be up at the crack of dawn, but they slept until about 7 a.m. I, on the other hand woke up at 4:30 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep. Oh well. As predicted, the first activity of the day was swimming with Dad. Roselyn stayed behind with me to help pack. We had our own little birthday celebration in the room and Romeo also got several calls during the day (i.e. Grandpa and Grandma Mork, sisters...). He is such a happy kid. A little quirky sometimes, but awfully happy. You will love him!!

We left for the airport around 12:30. I was wondering how it would go but it was great. No problem with security or paperwork. The biggest issue is ALWAYS trying to keep Rodrigo on a short leash. He is very independent and afraid of NOTHING so walking out into a street would not phase him in the least. We have already had lots of talks about holding hands and sticking together. He has a zest for life and we are learning more about this cute little boy of ours.

Anyway, the flight was uneventful. Both of the boys got window seats and were thrilled. I sat next to Rigo and tried to keep him occupied for the one hour flight. My life has definitely taken a turn. Instead of the usual Midwest Living magazine in my lap, I was holding a Richard Scarry book and a dot-to-dot book. To be honest, it felt alright and we had a good time!

The ride to the guest house took about an hour. All of the kids fell asleep en route. How sweet to see Rodrigo leaning against Romeo. Allen and I have noticed that our kids watch out for each other. They have become close through their journey together. It makes me glad that we adopted three children. It will give them strength as the years go by.

We ate dinner at the guest house. We sat with some people who started asking questions about our family. I know that they didn't mean to be rude, but they started talking about our children in the third person. I was surprised at my reaction to this. We had been warned about this but I didn't really think it would happen so soon. Allen kept trying to shift the conversation to something else, but it was kind of awkward. Both Allen and I have already become rather protective of these three children of ours. One additional note - Roselyn, Romeo and Rodrigo sat so patiently during this dinner conversation. I couldn't believe it. We were both very proud of them!!

Last thing of the day was to go swimming again. This time we all went. It was fun and felt very refreshing. We have more shopping to do tomorrow and plan on ice skating as well. (Go figure!) Should be another busy day. It was very scary a few days ago to think of being on our own with our kids but now that we are "flying solo" we are doing ok. Allen and I are very impressed with how far our kids have come the past 3 years. They are generally very happy, polite and considerate kids. We feel very blessed to call them our sons and daughter. We have a long way to go, but wow, if only you could see them. Oh, yeah... I guess you WILL see them...and you will be amazed!! Enough rambling. Thanks for checking in!

DAY FOUR

Today was a marathon day. As I look at my pictures, I can't believe all the things that we did. Each one of them had significant meaning. Our first activity was to visit the neighborhood that our children lived in. It was interesting as Roselyn and Romeo both talked about things that happened when they lived there. As we walked into the neighborhood, people were looking at us. An oddity to be sure!! At first they didn't recognize the kids because they have grown and are thriving. But once they figured out who they were, they were very excited to see them. It was no big secret that we were the adoptive parents and really, they were all very happy. The longer we stayed, the bigger the crowd became. It was fun for Roselyn and Romeo to see some relatives and some old friends. We actually felt welcome as all of these people seemed very pleased to know that the Romano children had been adopted into a new family.

After lunch, we had a medical meeting, a meeting with the house parents and a meeting with the teachers. All of it was very helpful and interesting. At around 5 p.m., the CSC family gave us their traditional farewell. All the children and the staff sing "God will take care of you" then one of the house parents prays a prayer of blessing. Oh! We had to pack the kids up as well. It was also very interesting to see what things they chose to bring along. Let me just say that... it wasn't much.

After we got to the hotel, the work started. The first order of business was to go to the shopping mall. OH MY GOODNESS!! Imagine Allen in the boys swimwear and underwear department while I was upstairs helping Roselyn to try on swimsuits. I guess you could call it "power shopping" and we did a good bit of damage. It was crazy!! We then stopped at McDonalds for our first family dinner together (special!!) and headed back to the hotel. It was showers, story time and sleep. They talked and giggled for a long time after the lights went out and seemed to be doing pretty well...considering...

I (frankly) am exhausted, but feel pretty good about how this day went. I cannot imagine what must be going on in the minds of our kids, but they seem to be so trusting of us. It's kind of mind-boggling to think that in the room next to us are three sleeping children...who are ours!!! I am very proud of how they handled this day. It could not have been easy.

A quick explanation of these pictures...the one with the two Filipino adults and our kids is a picture of Tarex and Puriza, the house parents. These people are amazing and are so good with all of the children. We are indebted to them. There are two pics of us during the "farewell". The last one is of Rigo after his first shower in our hotel room. He's a busy one!!

Well, I am going to bed because no doubt someone will be up at 5:30 (their normal wake-up hour) wanting to go swimming. That seems like a good activity for Allen, don't you think??? So, that's all for today. This is hard, but I can't tell you how much your comments and prayers have meant to us. It means more than you can know! We'll let you know how the flight to Manila goes tomorrow. We'll be there for three days before we head home to Cambridge. Thanks for reading! GOOD NIGHT!!

DAY THREE

Allen Mork - Guest Writer for the Day!!!
Day three started off with a text at 4:30 am (Cebu time!) from one of our daughters. It was about Kristin's cross country race (MIAC championship). It was great to hear from Steph and Lindsay who were there to cheer her on - and besides the text messages -they sent a few pictures to our cell phone. One of them was of the three of them after the race - and when we saw it - we both started crying as we realized how much we missed them. Even though it was an early and emotional start to the day - it was good and we appreciated hearing from them. By the way - Kristin had a very good race, finishing 14th and helping her Bethel team to a second place finish - missing first by only 2 points! Great job, Kristin!
Paul Healy picked us up much later in the morning and had our kids with him - then off to the church where they usually attend. We went to the later service as that one is in English - a very good choice given our limited Cebuano vocabulary!! It was very meaningful for us to worship there with our kids. Rodrigo sat next to me and did what any tired 6 year old American kid would do once the sermon started - he fell sound asleep!
After the service - we went out to eat with them as well as a few other CSC staff. Then we dropped the kids off at the shelter and went and met with their social worker, Carmelita. It was helpful to hear more in detail about what the circumstances were that brought them to CSC and again very sobering to understand more of what they have been through. Our plan is to go with Carmelita and Paul tomorrow to see their former neighborhood and the drop-in center where the two older kids where placed prior to coming to CSC. The rest of the afternoon was spent at the shelter playing with all of the CSC kids. Tonight was a traditional Filipino style dinner at the Cherne home where our kids currently live (with about 30 other kids). Romeo and one other boy in that house had their birthdays celebrated during dinner tonight and it was great to be a part of that as well!
Overall, today was a better day for us as well as our kids. It just seemed more natural to be around them and I think they feel more comfortable with us. After we got out of the car to go to the restaurant - Rodrigo reached up and grabbed my hand and held it as we walked in. Tonight as we said good-bye - the boys started up the stairs - only to be called back down to give their mother a good night hug and although slightly embarrassed as boys are with that sort of thing - they had big smiles on their face and it was clear that they liked it as well! It was a great way to end the day!
Tomorrow has more meetings with staff as well as the tour of their former neighborhood - then the "farewell" at CSC about 4pm and truly starting life with us as we bring them back to the hotel. Please pray for them as this can obviously be a very emotional time for them as well as the kids they leave behind. It will be a hard thing for all 3 but we are most concerned for Roselyn. We want to allow normal "grieving" while making sure she feels loved and supported during that time.
We are so grateful for the many prayers during the past few days and the many words of support, encouragement and love we have received from family and friends. We appreciate all of you more than you can possibly imagine - thanks!

DAY TWO

Today started out very well. Allen and I hit the fitness center and then enjoyed a great breakfast in the hotel. Sandy Swanson picked us up at about 10:30 and we headed to the shelter. We met for two hours with the counselors. It was very helpful but a bit sobering as well. We were reminded of what great progress our three kids have made in the last few years.

Sandy had warned us on the way to the shelter that the second day of the visit is usually much harder than the first. That proved to be true. I guess the best way for me to explain about this day is that reality is beginning to set in for our kids. Nothing really bad happened, but yes, we are all feeling the anxiety that comes with significant change.

Allen and I came back to the hotel around 4 p.m. and have had a good evening of rest. It is only the second day here and we are very tired. It is a very emotionally draining experience. I can only imagine how our kids must feel.

I am needing lots of prayer tonight. Today was much harder than yesterday. Here are a few pictures from the day.